Climbing to Artist Point (Mt. Baker) "Self-Paced"

Distance: 47.00 miles
Elevation Gain: 4,600 feet
Pace: Self Paced
Terrain: Hilly
Regroup: None/NA
Weather Cancels?: Steady rain cancels
RWGPS: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15557052 (outbound only, water stop info included)

Ride Description:

You trained up for STP and RAMROD, but not riding RSVP... Now what? Let's ride SR 542 to Artist Point on Mt. Baker!

Meeting place: We will meet in town of Glacier at Glacier Public Service Center for waiver signing and safety briefing. For those who are looking for a longer ride, there is an optional start from Maple Falls, 8 miles west of Glacier (park in the dirt parking lot across from Shell station), but please leave early enough to meet us by 8:45am.

Paces: This is a self-paced ride. All riders are welcome. Please note that there are no leading/sweeping Ride Leaders for the route. We will chug up the hill at our own pace and stop only to take pictures or for snack breaks. Because it is an out-and-back route, you can turn around at any point.

What to bring: Please bring a great attitude with you. Smiles work well, too. Even though there are places to refill bottles, please come prepared with 2 full bottles (or hydration pack) and plenty of snacks. You will also need tubes/tools for flats. Because the road is open to motor vehicle traffic, high-viz signs and tail lights are highly recommended.

Weather cancellation: If weather conditions on ride day meet or exceed the "Steady rain cancels" threshold for cancellation, I will post a Ride Cancelled note in the Comments block below not later than 6 AM on ride day. Please check here before starting for Glacier if the weather looks iffy.

Please join us at a local eatery for post-ride lunch (most likely in Glacier).

NOTE: The RWGPS file only contains the outbound leg of the route. It has 2 optional water refilling stops at Mile 13.1 (Silver Fir Campground off Hwy 542) and Mile 21.7 (Heather Meadows Visitor Center).

Make it a weekend: CBC is also hosting another ride from Bellingham up to the border on Saturday, if you'd like to make a weekend out of your riding adventure up north: Visit the CBC page here (https://www.cascade.org/node/38321) or see the meetup posting here (https://www.meetup.com/cascaderides/events/233124733/).